The union of lightwave technology and electronics technology, a science sometimes known as "photonics" or "optoelectronics", has been the subject of intensive research and development in recent years. Modern communications systems typically use complex electronics circuitry to operate on information in the form of electricity, lasers for converting the information to lightwaves, optical fibers for transmitting the lightwaves, photodetectors for converting the lightwave signals back to electronic signals, and other circuitry for operating on the electrical output of the photodetector.
Photonics device packages typically enclose one end of an optical fiber and a photonics device, e.g., a laser or a photodetector, to seal and protect the photonics device and the end of the optical fiber into which light is directed or from which light is extracted. As described in the United States patent of H. R. Clark, U.S. Pat. No. 5,017,263, granted May 21, 1991, and the United States patent of Ackerman et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,124,281, granted June 23, 1992, both hereby incorporated herein by reference, an optical fiber can be mounted in precise alignment with the photonics device by supporting it in a V-groove photolithographically formed in a monocrystalline substrate. Whether the photonics package is a laser package or a photodetector package, the photonics device itself must be electrically powered, and electronic circuitry associated with the device similarly requires electrical power, which is typically supplied by a power source and appropriate electrical conductors extending into the photonics package.
It has recently been found that aluminized optical fibers, that is, fibers covered on their outer surfaces by a thin layer of aluminum, are advantageous for use in photonics device packages because the aluminum coating protects the fiber from accidental breakage. Aluminized optical fiber can be held within a V-groove by epoxy, but it is recognized that the use of such adhesives may constitute a source of contamination within the photonics package. Because photonics packages are used in such large numbers, there is a long-felt need for techniques that would simplify their fabrication and operation; it would also be desirable to avoid the use of adhesives in such packages.